Method for constructing a building wall

ABSTRACT

A method for constructing a building wall utilizing a pair of spaced-apart reinforced concrete slabs connected by a hook and eye arrangement and urged apart by dividers which also form temporary forms to permit concrete to be poured therebetween, thereby providing spaced columns between the slabs.

937,142 10/1909 Chappelow ..25/131RR United States Patent 1 3,691,714

, Stepp 1 51 Se t. 19, 1972 METHOD FOR CONSTRUCTING A 1,473,418 11/ 1923 Bore] ..52/427 X BUILDING WALL 1,598,132 8/1926 Ham...; ..25/131 Z [72] Inventor; Benjamin Supp 315 w. th St" 1,829,841 11/1931 Threadgill ..52/427 Casa Grande, AriL 5222 2,275,738 3/1942 Dark ..249/45 X Filed: J 1970 3,300,939 l/1967 Bryw olfsson ..52/5-62 X [21] Appl. No.: 48,318 Primary Examiner-John E. Murtagh Attorney-Drummond, Cahill & Phillips [52] US. Cl. ..52/743, 52/426 51 Int. Cl. ..E04b 2/40 [571 ABSTRACT 1 Field of rch ..52/424, 425, 426, 427, 428, A method for constructing a building wall utilizing 3 52/429 i 562, 568i 741, 743; pair of spaced-apart reinforced concrete slabs con- 249/38404245'46; 25/13 12 RR nected by a hook and eye arrangement and urged apart by dividers which also form temporary forms to [56] References cued permit concrete to bepoured therebetween, thereby UNITED STATES PATENTS providing spaced columns between the slabs.

3 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTEDSEPIQM 359L714.

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ATTORNEYS METHOD FOR CONSTRUCTING A BUILDING WALL The present invention pertains to building construction, and more particularly, to method and apparatus for conveniently erecting a building wall with maximum efficiency and low cost.

In conventional construction, particularly in smaller building units such as dwellings and the like, it is customary to carefully schedule the various trades involved to insure that the basic plumbing is in before the walls are erected, that the wiring is completed before the walls are finished, etc. Attempts have been made to simplify the construction process by using prefabricated slab walls; however, the utilization of such prefabrication techniques has resulted in enumerable problems relating to trades and tradesmen and trades schedule.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for constructing a wall that will permit easy access to tradesmen for the completion of wiring, plumbing, etc., prior to the completion of the wall. It is another object of the present invention to provide a wall construction method and apparatus that will utilize the benefits of prefabrication without interfering with the efficient utilization of skilled labor and trades.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a wall construction method wherein compound prefabricated slabs may be utilized to permit ready access to utilities and other functions that are normally contained within the wall without complicating the construction procedure.

These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art as the description thereof proceeds.

The present invention may be described by reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top cross-sectional view of a wall constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of FIG. 1, taken along the line 2-2.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are perspective views, partly broken away, of portions of the wall structure of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of wall slabs showing how a wall slab constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention may be joined perpendicularly to another slab.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion of FIG. 5.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-4, preformed slabs l0 and 11 may be fonned of concrete and appropriately reinforced such as by wire mesh 14. The slabs may be molded to any convenient size and most advantageously are formed into standard sizes convenient for use in conventional constructions, such as four feet by eight feet, eight feet by twelve feet, etc. One of the slabs may arbitrarily be designated the exterior slab and will therefore be appropriately finished on the outside surface 15 thereof to provide the desired decorative appearance as well as weather-resistant properties. The slab 10 may also include rods 16 and 17 to which is attached a fastener 18 fastened to the rods 16 and 17 prior to the formation of the slab 10. When the slab has been formed, the fastener 18 is embedded therein and extends outwardly through the face 20 to form an eye 21.

The second slab 11 is similarly formed with rods 25 and 26 and a fastener 27. When the slab 11 is formed, the fastener 27 is embedded therein and extends outwardly through the face 30 to from a hook 31. The slab 11 may be termed the interior slab and the surface 33 thereof may be textured to present a desired interior surface.

In practicing the method of the present invention, the interior slab 10 is positioned in place and may temporarily be supported by any convenient means. Since the exterior of the interior slab is open, plumbing, electrical wiring, etc., may be installed at this time. The exterior slab 11 is subsequently placed in an opposing position by moving its vertically with respect to the interior slab 10 with the hook 31 thereof engaging the eye 21 of the interior slab.

Vertical dividers 40 and 41 are placed between the slabs 10 and 11 and positioned on either side of the hook and eye 31 and 21. The slabs I0 and l 1 are forced apart through the action of the dividers, as will be described more fully hereinafter, thus forcing the hook 31 into intimate contact with the eye 21. Concrete is then poured into the space bounded by the slabs 10 and l l and the vertical dividers 40 and 41.

The concrete, when set, forms a vertical column for assuming vertical loads and also locks the hook and eye into its engaged position. The vertical dividers 40 and 41 may then be removed and used again.

The vertical divider 40, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, comprises channels 43 and 44, each having a substantially U-shaped cross section, the openings of the U opposing each other. The width of the U 44, being less than the width of the U 43, slidably telescopes within the latter and is urged outwardly therefrom through a plurality of wedging rods, such as the wedging rod 46. The rod 46 is pivoted at 47 on the channel 43 and slidably engages the channel 44 at the inner surface 48 with a T-mernber 50. The rod 46 is provided with an internally threaded sleeve 52 that engages a threaded shaft 54, the latter passing through an opening 55 in a top plate 56 secured to the channel 43. A thrust bearing 60, which may be formed of a simple sleeve fixed to the shaft 54, slidably engages the plate 56 to prevent the rod 54 from being withdrawn through the opening 55.

Flexible sealing strips 65 and 66 are secured to the channels 44 and 43 respectively. When the vertical dividers 40 and 41 are placed between the slabs l0 and 11, the shaft 54 is rotated by the hand crank 67 formed at the end thereof. Rotation of the shaft 54 pivots the wedging rod 46 in the direction indicated by the arrow 68, thus wedging the T-bar 50 against the surface 48 and forcing the channels 43 and 44 apart. The sealing strips 65 and 66 abut the surfaces 20 and 30 of the slabs 10 and 11 respectively, causing the slabs to lock firmly in the hook and eye 31 and 21. The vertical dividers then act as forms for containing concrete poured therebetween in the space between the slabs 10 and 11. After the concrete sets, the vertical dividers may be removed by turning the shaft 54 to raise the T-bar 50 out of engagement with the surface 48, thereby releasing the pressure exerted by the vertical divider against the slabs l0 and 11.

Slabs contemplated in the present construction system may conveniently be connected at right angles to each other by apparatus such as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. A slab 70 may be formed with tabs 71 and 72 formed therein. Slab 75, to which the slab 70 is to be affixed at right angles, is provided with a channel 78 (secured thereto, such as by turn bolt 79) having parallel inclined slots 80 and 81. The slab 70 is slipped into the channel 78 with the tabs 71 and 72 sliding into the slots 80 and 81 provided in the channel 78. The resulting structure is effectively locked into place by the channel 78 and provides an effective means for joining slabs of the type contemplated in the present invention at right angles.

Utilization of the method and apparatus described above permits prefabricated slabs to be erected with the attendant efliciencies and low cost without giving rise to other difficulties relating to the implementation of prefabrication techniques in construction.

I claim:

1. A method for constructing a building wall having an inner and an outer slab, comprising the steps of: forming a first slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form an eye; forming a second slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form a hook; positioning said first hook through said eye; moving said slabs away from each other to force firm engagement of said hook with said eye; placing a pair of vertical dividers between said slabs in abutting relation to opposing faces of said slabs; pouring concrete between said vertical dividers to form a concrete column between said slabs.

2 A method for constructing a building wall having and inner and an outer slab, comprising the steps of; forming a first concrete slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form an eye; forming a second concrete slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form a hook; positioning said first slab in place, positioning said second slab by moving it vertically with respect to said first slab to thread said hook through said eye; moving said slabs away from each other to force firm engagement of said hook with said eye; placing a pair of vertical dividers between said slabs in abutting relation to opposed faces of said slabs and positioning the dividers on either side of said hook and eye; pouring concrete between said vertical dividers to encase said hook and eye and form a concrete column between said slabs.

vertically with respect to said first slab to thread said 3 The method including the steps set forth in claim 2, wherein the step of moving said slabs away from each other and the step of placing a pair of vertical dividers between said slabs in abutting relation are'performed simultaneously. 

1. A method for constructing a building wall having an inner and an outer slab, comprising the steps of: forming a first slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form an eye; forming a second slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form a hook; positioning said first slab in place, positioning said second slab by moving it vertically with respect to said first slab to thread said hook through said eye; moving said slabs away from each other to force firm engagement of said hook with said eye; placing a pair of vertical dividers between said slabs in abutting relation to opposing faces of said slabs; pouring concrete between said vertical dividers to form a concrete column between said slabs. CM,2Hod for constructing a building wall having and inner and an outer slab, comprising the steps of; forming a first concrete slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form an eye; forming a second concrete slab having a fastener embedded therein and extending outwardly through a face of said slab to form a hook; positioning said first slab in place, positioning said second slab by moving it vertically with respect to said first slab to thread said hook through said eye; moving said slabs away from each other to force firm engagement of said hook with said eye; placing a pair of vertical dividers between said slabs in abutting relation to opposed faces of said slabs and positioning the dividers on either side of said hook and eye; pouring concrete between said vertical dividers to encase said hook and eye and form a concrete column between said slabs. CM,3Ethod including the steps set forth in claim 2, wherein the step of moving said slabs away from each other and the step of placing a pair of vertical dividers between said slabs in abutting relation are performed simultaneously. 